Two of the most exciting experimental drugs in Amgen’s pipeline - one for osteoporosis and one for high cholesterol - come from human genetic studies. Sean Harper, Amgen’s executive vice president for research and development, said in an interview that drugs based on findings from animal models often did not work, but products based on human genetic discoveries DeCODE never really had the financial wherewithal to develop drugs and it dropped its fledgling effortsĪmgen, the world’s largest independent biotechnology company, says it believes it can use deCODE’s findings and technology to its advantage.ĭr. That meant there would be little demand for diagnosticīut identifying the gene provides clues to the mechanism of the disease, which pharmaceutical companies might use. Most of the genetic variations raised the risk of getting a disease by only a small amount. It was bought out of bankruptcy in 2010 by Saga Investments, a group led by two ventureĬapital companies, Polaris Venture Partners and Arch Venture Partners.ĭeCODE Genetics Kari Stefansson, the founder of deCode.Ī big issue for deCODE has been how to make money from its discoveries. Just this year, it published a study identifyingĪ rare mutation that protects people from getting Alzheimer’s disease, a second on a mutation that significantly raises the risk of Alzheimer’s, and a third suggesting that older men are more likelyĭespite its research efforts, deCODE has had trouble building a sustainable business, and it filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009. DeCODE will get a well-financed partner to further its research, while Amgen is hoping to capitalize on the cutting-edge findings.ĭeCODE, a privately held company in Iceland, has studied the local population to identify genetic variations linked to schizophrenia, cancer and numerous other diseases. The companies are hoping the deal will be symbiotic. In a bid to bolster its drug discovery efforts, the biotechnology giant Amgen said on Monday that it would pay $415 million to acquire deCODE Genetics, a gene-hunting business known for its headline-grabbing discoveries DeCode Genetics A lab at deCODE Genetics, which found that the genetic nature of human disease was far more complex than anyone thought.
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